Simmental in the Pines

I am busy packing, finding boxes, getting tape stuck all over me, plus working long days, driving hours to drop off my packed items and then driving more hours to go check on my cows.  I will be glad when the cows, my stuff, my dog and my mail are all in the same area.          It can't happen fast enough for me. But its going so slow because I am doing this all by myself.     I don't know anyone, under 80 years old, in this area who could physically help me do this move.     I call it my "penance" for isolating myself for so many years and just working with animals.    Every day I pray my back and my remaining knee hold up to the stress of all this moving.       To top things off, early yesterday morning there was no water.    It is darn right scary to turn a faucet on and have nothing come out.     The plumber was called and I prayed the well wasn't dry because of the drought.

Yesterday was a day of reflection.          I have made it a personal tradition to spend it alone doing something quiet.  A walk in the woods, a kayak paddle in a remote pond or a few hours sitting in the field with my cows is what I have done in the past.       So, after dropping another truckload of packed boxes at my new residence I drove to the farm where my cows are spending the next 6 weeks.    I walked the massive fields looking for them.     I meandered along the cow paths through the woods of cedar trees and white pines.    I called, they answered, but I never was able to actually locate them.  Apparently they haven't figured out where all the open gates are to move from one area to another and I haven't figured out how to get to every field on this massive farm.       My herd is now with the bull and as I walked to each field and met all the other cows, calves and yearlings that reside on this farm I realized the bull is exclusively with "my girls" right now and not mingling with the regular herd.               Isn't that interesting....

When I returned to my truck the farmer's wife met me with a smile and asked if I had found my cows. When I told her all the fields I had walked to with no confirmed sighting, she assured me that my cows were fine and that she had a photo she wanted to show me that she had taken that morning as she walked her rural road:

That's my "Queen cow" Googly, the oldest cow in my herd.  Obviously hiding out in the pines with the rest of the herd, and her young calf.    It was nice to see that there were no flys on her and that perhaps this cooler weather was eliminating them or that my constant spraying had indeed helped.    Better yet, I do believe that the cedar and pine oil are also natural fly repellents and the cows like to rub their heads on the trunks and limbs when they walked thru the cedar stands at our previous farm.     I loved the photo, but was still a little sad that I was unable to spend some "cracker time" with my girls, rub their ears, spray them and check their wounds.    As the sun started to set I turned my truck towards home praying there was water for the chickens, cow, Mavis, Murphy, a shower, coffee and pasta.               No such luck.
Luckily, there is a small trickling stream for the cow and hens. Bottled water for cat, dog and coffee.

Still none this morning.           And the packing continues......